Facebook, Twitter give viral marketing a pulse

Insearchindia.com's Media, Advertising, Marketing Watch

Facebook, Twitter give viral marketing a pulse


Insearchindia.com Team

(8 February 2010 10:45 pm)


MUMBAI: Social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter
are increasingly helping brands to create a viral impact on
consumer purchase choices through word of mouth (WoM).

Citing an example while speaking at the The Mindshare Brand
Equity Compass 2010 here today, Perfetti Van Melle India CEO
Sameer Suneja said that a particular telecom company wasn't
entertaining my friend's complaint. Irritated, he set his
status message on Facebook against the telecom company.
This was followed by some friends spreading similar status
messages and the viral impact led the telecom firm to act
in haste.

"In an hour's time, the telecom operator agreed to help
and requested in changing the status message. Such is the
power of social networking," he said.

According to marketers, WoM is fast catching up via the
social networking sites with 70 per cent of Indians
aged 15-34 age group. Also, about 60 per cent consumers
trust and take purchasing decisions based on online
discussions.

According to Suneja, WoM works for rational purchases,
there are different categories of rational purchases including
food. "Buying food products are high on impulse and in such
cases WoM plays the catalyst," he says.

Author Chetan Bhagat is also of the opinion that WoM does
the trick when there aren't sufficient marketing budgets.
"If one is to attract a crowd for an event in a short notice,
WoM is a very effective medium. But, it's effective when the
news is fresh and 'awesome'. A marketing budget of
Rs 500,000-7, 00,000 can buy a lot of space on the internet
which can be effectively used."

So how does WoM work as a marketing tool?
Says FritoLay India CEO foods division & Pepsico India
region president Gautham Mukkavilli, "A stressed consumer
looks in for simplified choices. Before zeroing in on what
to buy, the consumer makes sure he accesses his personal
space that can be anything from dance class to a blog."

IPL sets floor price for new franchisees at $225 million

Insearchindia.com's News Headlines

IPL sets floor price for new franchisees at $225 million


Insearchindia.com Team

(Updated at 17 December 2009 9:25 pm)
(17 December 2009 7:35 pm)


MUMBAI: The Indian Premier League (IPL) has set the base price
for the bidding of two new franchisees at $225 million.

The auction takes place on 19 January 2010. The IPL will have
two new franchisees from 2011.



IPL chairman and commissioner Lalit Modi said that from the
third season the IPL will use HD production. All venues will
have CCTVs and turnstiles. There will be permanent cabling
for TV production.

The final of IPL 3.0 will take place at the DY Patil Stadium
in Navi Mumbai. The two semi-finals will be played in Bangalore.

Once IPL 3.0 is over, existing franchisees will be allowed to
retain a few core members of their current teams, the modalities
for which are to be announced shortly.

Modi said a licensing deal has been done with a watch company,
but declined to give further details.

Modi has apparently buried the hatchet with his baiters in the
BCCI. Clarified BCCI president Shashank Manohar, “Lalit Modi has
done an excellent job and he will complete his full term till 2012."

Meanwhile, James Rego has joined the IPL as head of production.
He was earlier with Nimbus where he worked as vice president for TV.

ESS launches ESPN NEWS on Singtel platform in Singapore

Insearchindia.com Team

(19 November 2009 11:20 pm)


MUMBAI: ESPN Star Sports (ESS) has announced the launch of ESPN NEWS, the sports news channel dedicated to Asian sports fans, on SingTel’s Mio TV platform in Singapore.

ESS is also interested to get the channel to India and has applied to the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting for its clearance.

Consisting of highlights, scores, updates and sports information, ESPN NEWS will provide real-time sports news.



The new channel will deliver content from local, regional and international sporting events.

ESS MD Manu Sawhney commented, “As Asia’s leading sports broadcaster, the launch of ESPN NEWS, the first 24/7 sports news channel dedicated to Asian sports fans, is a defining moment for us and I’m delighted to share this with our valued partner SingTel.”

The channel’s layout features four main data streams - a ‘video window’ carrying all the sports action and highlights; a ‘bottom line’ graphic streaming results and upcoming fixtures, a ‘top line’ graphic which provides a continuous update of news, and the ‘sideline’ graphic which will provide the latest standings, rankings and statistics from the professional leagues around the world.




“We are excited about welcoming ESPN NEWS as the first of several ESS channels that will be coming onto the Mio TV platform. Mio TV is fast gaining traction as a serious player in the sports broadcasting arena, and we are certain that the synergy that comes out of this partnership will ensure an excellent experience for all sports fans in Singapore,” said Singtel VP (Mio TV) Tim Carmichael.

Currently launched with an English voice-over, ESPN NEWS will also be available in Cantonese and Bahasa Melayu at a later date.

The channel is currently available free to all Mio TV subscribers till 17 December, and subsequently will be available at no additional cost to those who sign up for the Barclays Premier League 2010/11 with 'ESPN STAR Sports Channels Early Bird' offer. It will also be available on an a la carte basis at $8.90.

ESPN NEWS is already available in Myanmar, the Philippines, Cambodia and Vietnam and will be rolled out across other markets in the region in the coming months.

Sony Pictures' 2012 set to break box-office records

By inserachindia.com Team (13 November 2009 6:55 pm)

MUMBAI: Sony Pictures' 2012, the biggest-ever Hollywood release in India that opened today in English, Hindi, Tamil and Telugu is all set to break box-office records. In its opening day, the film grossed Rs. 56 million. With a total of 676 prints in 716 screens across the country, 2012 is already creating records of sorts with theaters in cities such as Mumbai, Pune, Bangalore, Delhi NCR, Indore, Nagpur, Jaipur, Gwalior, Hyderabad, seeing full houses throughout the day. Cinemas like Inox, Gold, Fame, Citypride and Mangala in Pune and PVR and Inox Garuda in Bangalore have reported a full house for three days from Friday to Sunday. Comments Sony Pictures India managing director Kercy Daruwala, "While it is too early for hard numbers, judging from the good response, we are expecting the film to be one of the top-grossing Hollywood films of all time in the country following the steps of other blockbusters from our studio such as the Spider-Man series and Bond series. "The huge marketing campaign around the film and the major human interest in the doomsday concept seem to be the cause of this scale of response from the audience."

HITS policy coming by year-end: Soni

www.insearchindia.blogspot.com Team

(26 August 2009 7:15 pm)

NEW DELHI: Information and Broadcasting Minister Ambika Soni assured today that the Headend-In-The-Sky (HITS) policy would be in place by the end of this year. Though the policy had been finalised and placed before the Union Cabinet early this year, it could not be taken up. The policy based on the recommendations of the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai), however, is at a final stage for decision.

HITS will speed up the process of digitisation of cable TV services across the country. Addressing the NEWS NEXT 2009 meet on Triumph over Travails organised by Times Now, Soni allayed fears that the government would clamp down on content on television or bring forward any content regulation without discussion. While her Ministry did not want to be identified only with content, the pace of dialogue on this with the stakeholders needed to be accelerated in view of pressures from the Courts, the National Commission for Women, and Parliament.

Soni expressed the hope that the Broadcast Services Regulation Bill would soon be given a final shape for introduction in Parliament. I&B Secretary Raghu Menon is currently holding discussions with stakeholders on the Bill. Referring to the concerns relating to TRPs and carriage, Soni said digitisation was the only answer. Reacting to views, she said the government was prepared to hold a dialogue on foreign direct investment. Addressing the various TV news heads present, she requested that at least 5 per cent of the 168-odd hours of news broadcasting should be devoted to success stories. She said her Ministry was presenting holding consultations with the Human Resources Development Ministry on issues such as royalty which had cropped up in connection with Phase III of FM Radio since the Copyright Act was administered by that Ministry. Remarking on Doordarshan, which completes 50 years next month, Soni said it was a "challenge" to bring it at par with other private television channels. "The biggest challenge before the Ministry today is to bring DD at par with other channels. DD has a big reach, maximum number of transmitters, even along border areas, and funding is also not a problem for it," Soni said. Soni said the new advertising policy was aimed at helping the small and medium newspapers.

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Animal Planet to launch 'Jockeys' on 11 August

(6 August 2009 9:20 pm)

MUMBAI: Animal Planet is set to launch Jockeys, a 12-part reality series, on 11 August. The series gives an insider-look of the competition and private lives of seven professional jockeys. It will be telecast every Tuesday at 10 pm. Says Discovery Networks Asia Pacific SVP and GM India Rahul Johri says, "Jockeys will showcase the lives of these sportsmen both on and off the race track. The series captures the range of emotions of jockeys who risk their lives, all for the love of the sport of horse racing."